“Switch. Conserve. Make some noise.” Building on this sturdy, strategic framework, the ex-astronaut and her longtime writing collaborator present budding eco-activists with a range of suggestions designed to spark a “go green” mindset at home and in school. With exceptions, such as perfunctory directions for starting a vegetable garden in containers or creating some domestic pressure to save water by timing everyone’s showers, the tips for saving energy and natural resources are reasonably doable—and the authors usually explain in general terms the potential benefits of each. Illustrated with simple line drawings of young people in action, and featuring simple surveys, checklists and a sample letter, this makes a worthy addition to the plethora of similar handbooks. Mission: Planet Earth (2009) shares both authors and publication date, but addresses an older audience and takes a more theoretical look at the potential hazards of unwise energy management. (Nonfiction. 9-11)
Pub Date: March 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-59643-379-3
Page Count: 61
Publisher: Flash Point/Roaring Brook
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2009
Categories: CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Who is next in the ocean food chain? Pallotta has a surprising answer in this picture book glimpse of one curious boy. Danny, fascinated by plankton, takes his dory and rows out into the ocean, where he sees shrimp eating those plankton, fish sand eels eating shrimp, mackerel eating fish sand eels, bluefish chasing mackerel, tuna after bluefish, and killer whales after tuna. When an enormous humpbacked whale arrives on the scene, Danny’s dory tips over and he has to swim for a large rock or become—he worries’someone’s lunch. Surreal acrylic illustrations in vivid blues and red extend the story of a small boy, a small boat, and a vast ocean, in which the laws of the food chain are paramount. That the boy has been bathtub-bound during this entire imaginative foray doesn’t diminish the suspense, and the facts Pallotta presents are solidly researched. A charming fish tale about the one—the boy—that got away. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-88106-075-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2000
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The Pumpkin Book (32 pp.; $16.95; Sept. 15; 0-8234-1465-5): From seed to vine and blossom to table, Gibbons traces the growth cycle of everyone’s favorite autumn symbol—the pumpkin. Meticulous drawings detail the transformation of tiny seeds to the colorful gourds that appear at roadside stands and stores in the fall. Directions for planting a pumpkin patch, carving a jack-o’-lantern, and drying the seeds give young gardeners the instructions they need to grow and enjoy their own golden globes. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1999
ISBN: 0-8234-1465-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1999
Categories: CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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